Union joins OMB appeal of Caledon development plan

Kelly Darnley, president of the Caledon Chamber of Commerce, says local business welcome the support of a union in the fight over the town's municipal zoning rules. (JOE WARMINGTON/Toronto Sun file photo)

Peel Region taxpayers will foot massive legal bills for an ongoing soap opera over development in Caledon that’s headed to the Ontario Municipal Board next summer.

The dispute includes a cast that ranges from Caledon’s council to developers, a trade union and local business people and boils down to how much development should happen in the largely rural community and how fast.

For some, it’s a classic case of NIMBYism.

Caledon council permitted significant development in some parts of the region but not others, and approved a development plan that restricted residential growth in Bolton, Caledon’s urban core. At the same time, council permitted significant new retail and business development Bolton, which is part of Caledon.

Those businesses began shutting their doors, and some, including Boston Pizza, Shoeless Joe’s, Canadian Tire and Home Depot had to restructure or ask for assistance from their respective corporate head offices.

With potentially billions of dollars worth of development at stake, the dispute led to defamation lawsuits and bitter allegations that local council ignored provincial planning rules permitting development to thwart one developer in favour of another.

One of the players, Solmar Development Corporation, launched the OMB appeal and has been fighting what they characterize as Caledon’s flawed decision-making process and development plan.

A group of stakeholders backing Solmar – including as of Friday a local home-builders union and Caledon’s Chamber of Commerce – have joined the dispute to argue in Solmar’s favour.

Kelly Darnley of the Caledon Chamber of Commerce said residential development is desperately needed to support the struggling businesses in the area where Solmar wants to build.

“We believe that the voices of our small businesses have gone unheard,” said Darnley outside court, adding that the business owners “are hoping the OMB decides to allow population into the area.”

Local 183 of the Universal Workers Union – a union made up mostly of local builders – also officially threw its hat into the ring on Friday.

“Local 183 has strong ties to this community, (and) we’ve built the most homes in this community than any other” said John Evans, council for Local 183, adding that the union’s labourers live in the community and would like to work close to home.

“As things stand, this community is going to stagnate...and this effects our membership,” Evans said.

The OMB hearing will begin June 25 and is expected to last five weeks. Because Caledon is a part of Peel Region, residents from the entire region will pay the lion’s share of Caledon’s legal costs.